Article

2013-09-16 Home Front: WoT

WaPo: USA neglecting fates of its Afghan translators

By Dakota Meyer and Bing West

Four years ago, a bleeding Afghan interpreter, Fazel, staggered out of an ambush in Ganjigal Valley in eastern Afghanistan. Trapped inside the valley were four Americans. Asked to help rescue them, he said, "I have a wife and baby. But I will go back." Fazel returned to the battle, killed several Taliban fighters and carried out the bodies of the fallen Americans.

Since that fight, the Taliban has been determined to kill Fazel, who has served with U.S. units for five years and has received 15 certificates and letters of commendation attesting to his work record. Shortly after the ambush, Fazel applied for a visa to the United States.

Since he applied, the State Department has issued almost 2 million visas to immigrants. The visa section at State was repeatedly informed that the Taliban was hunting Fazel. But for four years, there was no movement. Last month, Fox News reported the neglect, and Gen. Joseph Dunford, the senior commander in Afghanistan, insisted that Fazel receive a visa "as soon as possible." A few days ago, an overjoyed Fazel got his visa.

On the one hand, this is a happy ending to a nearly five-year odyssey. But it is depressing that a four-star general had to personally intervene to resolve the case of someone clearly loyal to the United States. Fazel risked the lives of his family because, in his mind, he was an American, fighting alongside his fellow grunts. Ask any company commander returning from Afghanistan, and he can tell you about another Fazel, equally deserving of a visa.

What's happening is a failure to keep faith with those who fought beside us. The State Department has defied Congress by denying visas to thousands of interpreters who, like Fazel, fight alongside our soldiers. Congress has authorized 1,500 visas per year for Afghans who have assisted us; the State Department annually approves about 200. In a letter to President Obama, more than a dozen members of Congress, Democrats and Republicans, complained that in the past five years, State has issued only 12 percent of the available visas. An analogous program for Iraq has been similarly stalemated.

To qualify for a visa, Afghan interpreters must provide recommendations from U.S. officers and be interviewed and approved by the U.S. Embassy in Kabul. The next step is the bottleneck: If approved there, the application must be reviewed by security committees in Washington. These panels have no incentive to say yes and a huge incentive to say no in order to avoid blame for any future incident. For example, two Iraqi refugees living in Kentucky were arrested in 2010 for shipping weapons to Al-Qaeda in Iraq. But the refugees in Kentucky had not laid their lives on the line for American soldiers; they weren't recommended by U.S. officers who had served alongside them.

Dakota Meyer, a retired Marine sergeant, was awarded the Medal of Honor fighting alongside Fazel in the battle of Ganjigal. Bing West, a former assistant secretary of defense, embedded as a media correspondent with Meyer and Fazel shortly after that battle.

Posted by Anguper Hupomosing9418 2013-09-16 00:00|| || Front Page|| [11132 views ] Top

#1 What this is all about is a "dual-realities" fantasy in which the US Government officially says - "We are not going to leave until we have produced a safe, democratic Afghanistan, where all Afghans who have helped us will help lead the "little Switzerland" that we have left behind. As such, we do not want to contribute to the expatriation of Afghanistan's best and brightest".

In reality, any US Government officials with any clue at all realizes deep down that once the USA pulls out, Afghanistan will almost instantly revert back to its barbaric seventh-century norms, with corrupt Taliban warlords running the various regions, and slaughtering everyone who can be identified as having helped the expelled foreign invaders.

It is American Government moral cowardice, underpinned by the ludicrous fantasy of a future free and democratic Afghanistan.

The only military force in living memory who sincerely tried to "do the right thing" were the rebellious portions of the French Army in Algeria in 1961-62 - who refused to abandon the "pieds noirs" allies who had helped the French battle to FLN since 1954. The French sympathizers were destined for slaughter by the soon-to-be- victorious FLN - and the honorable French officers refused to abandon them - creating the OAS of "Day of the Jackal" fame.

The French Officers were eventually captured, tried, and either shot or imprisoned.

Back in 1985, I did my Infantry Officer's Advanced Course 'thesis' on the "lessons learned" by the US Army, from the French Army's partial revolt against its own duplicitous government.

Posted by Lone Ranger 2013-09-16 03:24|| 2013-09-16 03:24|| Front Page Top

#2 You should see Bldg 4 today Ranger.

Posted by Besoeker 2013-09-16 03:52|| 2013-09-16 03:52|| Front Page Top

#3 Neglect, as a pattern.

Posted by Besoeker 2013-09-16 03:57|| 2013-09-16 03:57|| Front Page Top

#4 Neglecgt is not innocent. In any future guerrilla conflict aby localk willing to act as the eyes and ears of the US Armed Forces will remeber the fate of the Afgahans and think it twice. In other words Husein Obama is doing a lasting damage to America.

Posted by JFM 2013-09-16 07:13|| 2013-09-16 07:13|| Front Page Top

#5 Lone Ranger alow me to correct some points is what you say about Algeria and the Pieds Noirs.

FFirst French officers didn't rebel out of concern for the harkis but to keep Algeria in France having the eeling they had militarily won the war but that De Gaulle was willing to throw it under the bus for political reasons.

The Pieds Noirs were French citizens from European stock (mostly Italian, Spanish and Alsacian) living and frequently born in Algeria. I know since I am one of tghem. There was no problem in allowing them to return to France even if I suspect De Gaulle was not that happy about it since most of them didn't belong to the Gallic-Franck herrensvolk.

The pêople you are speaking about are the harkis that is indigenous people who had fought alongside with the French Army not neccessariliy out of love of the Fench but because they knew far too well what kind of people were in the FLN THe FLN was mix of pan arabs (didn't sit well between the Berbers), islamists and common criminals all of them ready to perpetrate the worst atrocities to prevail. In fact many GIA leaders during the Algerian civil war when entire villages were exterminated in thh most sadistic way) boasted of having done the same.

So De Gaulle refused to take the harkis in France even those who had fought for it not only in the Algerian war but also in WWIi (more below). Soime french officers compromised theit careers and smuggled harkis to France. While De Gaulle didnt dare to repetriate them he had them parked in concentration camps. Envision new born baies in tents by minus 12C.

Now in Algeria the harkis far outnumbered the FLN and could havce easily held their own but they were disarmed by the French Army on De Gaule's orders and met a horrible fate at the hands of FLN's sadistic thugs.

PS: Harkis and PMieds Noirs (the harkis were more numerous but Pieds Noirs mobilization rate was at a world record 45%) formed the backbone of the French troops who fought at Cassino, in the Provence Landing and during the Bulge. The after Bulge when German soldiers began to raise their arms after a few shots they were replaced by French from France to make them appear victorious.

Posted by JFM 2013-09-16 07:55|| 2013-09-16 07:55|| Front Page Top

#6 How about a new Underground Railway via Mexico City to El Norte. Once across the border they become a protected class in California.

Posted by Procopius2k 2013-09-16 08:59|| 2013-09-16 08:59|| Front Page Top

#7 What P2K said. If they can pass for Mexican all they have to do is walk across the border.

Posted by Ebbang Uluque6305 2013-09-16 14:27|| 2013-09-16 14:27|| Front Page Top

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